Health Information – Sayonara to the Raw Vegetable Myth (Part 2)

When it comes to vegetables, cooked is better. In fact, research has shown that cooked vegetables have five to 100 times the cancer-fighting benefits of raw vegetables. Despite the widespread “salads are healthy” image, the truth is that cooked vegetables are superior. So, say farewell to the myth of raw vegetables.

Cooking Greatly Increases Anti-Oxidant Benefits (continued)

Professor Hiroshi Maeda of Kumamoto University discovered that lipid peroxides formed when lipids (fats) oxidize and react with an iron component found in meats called heme to form carcinogenic lipid peroxide radicals. Flavonoids, polyphenols and chlorophyll found in vegetables can neutralize these lipid peroxide radicals and cooking the vegetable boosts the benefits of these compounds.

Actual tests for component which inhibit carcinogenic active oxygen were done comparing plain water in which vegetables were left to soak for five minutes with a cooked soup made with the same vegetables. Soups made with beefsteak leaves, lettuce, trefoil, edible chrysanthemum leaves and green bell peppers showed the greatest increases. Unheated water in which edible chrysanthemums were soaked contained approximately ten units versus 500 units for the chrysanthemum soup; an increase of a factor of 50. Beefsteak leaves measured 250 versus 7,500; an increase of a factor of 30. Lettuce soup increased the beneficial components to 8,000 units from 170; an increase by a factor of nearly 50. (Note: the “units” are used to represent the comparative values derived from the experiment.)

To be continued

(Translated by Roy Mashima)

(The information provided should not be construed as medical advice or instruction. Consult your physician before attempting any new program. Readers who fail to consult appropriate health authorities assume the risk of developing serious medical conditions.)

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